Why it works: Cauliflower and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 233 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Cauliflower Fried, Villeroi
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the cauliflower until tender, then drain and cut the flowered heads into small bunches.
Dip the cauliflower in Villeroi sauce and set aside in a cool place to let the sauce adhere.
Bread the cauliflower with fresh bread crumbs.
Dip the breaded cauliflower in beaten eggs and then bread them again.
Fry the cauliflower in hot lard until nicely browned.
Serve on a napkin, garnished with fried parsley.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
-
Cauliflower + parsleytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together233 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Bread + eggtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together22,662 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
-
Bread + parsleytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,588 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Cauliflower + breadtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together223 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Egg + parsleytop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,765 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Swap the cauliflower
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sauce, bread, egg, parsley):
- Shallotfits better
- Chivefits better
- Asparagusfits better
- Cauliflowerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sauce, bread, egg, parsley. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
You might also like
The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.
Brown Bread461 recipes
White Bread80 recipes
Bread Omelette60 recipes
Oatmeal Bread51 recipes